Unlocking future chapters

And, as promised, following Artie’s blog post, it’s over to Julian who graduated a few years ago in French and Law and whose career so far has involved a good deal of travel which gives us a great excuse to include some pictures…:

‘When I moved to Germany, almost four years ago I didn’t really have a plan. After years of moving countries (from Scotland, to studying abroad in Vancouver and Paris), coming “home” felt necessary, provided, I didn’t know what would follow. All I knew was what I had to offer, I had the keys, I just had to find the right door.

I used to take growing up trilingual for granted and it wasn’t until I came to Stirling to study French, that I really began to fathom the true power of language. That in this cosmopolitan world, the power to understand and be understood is the greatest currency that counts. And by the end of my studies in Stirling, I felt by all means wealthy.

When the time came to pick a career, like many graduates, I was overwhelmed. I felt myself stumped by the idea of finding a job that not only fulfilled me, but where I could also hone the language skill-set acquired from my Stirling degree. In Munich, after much pondering, I found the perfect path at the time: I became a flight attendant.

After studying, this has been the most rewarding decision I’ve made. I’ve spent three years now jet setting around the globe, seeing and exploring the world in a way that would have never been possible without my language skills acquired during my time at Stirling. And although I am beginning to feel that it is time to diversify and seek a career change, these past three years have felt like hitting the jackpot because I was able to unlock life experiences I never could have imagined.

I started writing this post just before it became evident what dimensions the Covid-19 outbreak would take and the effect this might have on our lives, health and possibly even careers. My time in the skies could be coming to a quicker end than I ever wished or expected. Like many, I am now confined to my flat, hoping that we somehow overcome this pandemic. I wish everyone from the French department, past and present, all the best and good health in these unsettling times. I am sure that our studies at Stirling will keep unlocking future chapters in our lives!’

Many, many thanks to Julian for this great update – we really hope that everything falls into place swiftly and positively and, in the meantime, stay well and stay safe!

A journey into the wonders of French

Two blog posts for the price of one today! Both the authors – Artie first, then Julian – are very much caught up in the current Covid-context so there are some thoughts here on the immediate impacts that is having on the lives of recent(-ish) Languages graduates. However, both have also been kind enough to reflect on their lives and career paths since graduation, with plenty of food for thought for anyone reading this and wondering where a degree involving a language might lead them… First, it’s Artie’s turn:

‘My journey into the wonders (and confusions at the many same-sound endings) of French language learning began with my studies at the University of Stirling in September 2012 with a degree in French and Spanish. I began the degree with a beginner’s knowledge of French (and by beginner’s, I mean absolutely zero French know-how, I still remember learning the phrase “Je suis de Doncaster” in one of my first classes…).

By graduation in 2016 I had vastly improved my knowledge of both French language and culture, with some of my French writing assessments equalling, and even surpassing my Spanish writing. I graduated with a First-Class honour’s degree and this became the foundation which I have since used to explore multiple career avenues.

Through the University of Stirling, I was able to complete a year as an English Language Assistant with the British Council in Tenerife upon graduating. I had two potential career paths I was interested in following, teaching or translation, and this allowed me the opportunity to trial run one. My professors at the University of Stirling also helped me apply for a scholarship to fund a research project while working with the British Council, an opportunity I surely wouldn’t have had otherwise. While I enjoyed my time immensely as an English Language Assistant and was offered to stay a further year, I ultimately decided to return to academia, and began a Masters in Translation Studies at the University of Glasgow.

I continued with my original language pair, French and Spanish, while attending advanced translation and translation theory classes. Here, I was able to build on practices already learned in my Undergraduate course adding further translation theory, fully confident, not only in my ability to state where I’m from, but also pay attention to nuances within the French language, differences between French and English writing styles, becoming ever more confident in my own writing abilities and stylistic choices as a translator.

After completing my Master’s in Translation Studies at the University of Glasgow, I started work as a Videogames Localisation Quality Assurance Tester, a really rather long title for what I actually did – play video games and make sure translations are error free and feel made for the target audience. It has been an excellent graduate role where I mainly work with likeminded people of a similar age group, in a fairly relaxed multicultural office environment with plenty of opportunities to practice my speaking skills (not that I ever feel like I do this enough). After beginning work as a Tester, I then combined my testing experience with my background in teaching and began training any new starts that came into the company. Following on from this, I moved onto Project Coordinating where I began coordinating the testers, as opposed to directly testing the videogames myself. Through this role, I further developed managerial, timekeeping, organisational and communication skills – all of which are highly coveted in the world of translation where Project Coordinators are always needed.

And so, we have arrived my present situation! I, like most everyone else, am currently at home, self-isolating, faced with the current global circumstances but, oddly enough, it is a time when we are all most connected, checking in with each other, doing those little things that have been neglected on our to-do list (like… say… writing an article for a blog) and where language skills are just as important as ever. Most recently I had the opportunity to translate a UN document from French into English as a volunteer while staying at home, interview for a potential role in Bordeaux, and I’m using this time to attempt to build up a freelance client base in the hopes of maybe, hopefully (fingers and toes crossed!) being able to translate as a Freelancer by the end of the year. And let’s not forget the most taxing at home activity of all – watching an abundance of French films and series as a vital means of continuing my exposure to the language, it’s a hard job but someone has to do it!

I do hope everyone is keeping safe in these tricky times and remember enjoy your time at the University of Stirling while you can, it’ll be over before you know it!’

Many, many thanks to Artie for taking the time to send us this fantastic blog post – I, for one, have learned things about the role of translation in gaming that I certainly didn’t know before! We hope all goes well with the client-base-building and we look forward to more updates in the future. In the meantime, stay well and stay safe.

From a Paris living room to the ‘anywhere box’

As lockdown measures and confinement and a range of different restrictions continue to be implemented across the globe, it’s particularly welcome to receive news and updates from former students (current students are also very welcome to get in touch!) who find themselves dotted across the world. Like everyone else, they are adapting to the current circumstances and thinking about the impact on their plans (professional and personal) and we’re very grateful to them for sharing their thoughts with us and for finding the time to send through new blog posts.

Today, it’s the turn of David, whose travels in Colombia and Sicily regular readers will have followed over the past couple of years, and who has sent the article below with some photos of an empty but sunny day in the Parisian suburbs:

‘If you had asked me where I would be, at this point in time, seven months ago after my last blog update, my living room in Paris would definitely not have been at the top of my list! Before I tell you how I ended up here, however, I thought I could perhaps tell you about the joys of teaching!

As mentioned in my previous piece, I decided that I was finally ready to start my teaching qualification after a couple of years of experience. My course at the University of Glasgow consists of teaching theory as well as teaching practice as a language teacher. My first placement was in a school in Paisley where I saw first-hand how much work teachers have to deal with on a daily basis. As one of my colleagues said, you aren’t only teaching them a language, but also teaching them how to learn it. I hadn’t realised how much planning was involved in order to stay on top of the workload. Some teachers’ capacity to juggle classes made up of pupils with completely different levels is mind-blowing!

My second placement was in a school in Clydebank where I learnt to become more independent as a teacher and create my own resources for my lessons. Located to the west of Glasgow, an area that includes some of the most deprived parts of Scotland where many pupils live in very challenging conditions. However, the school showed me how being part of a community of teachers and parents could create more opportunities for underprivileged pupils by working together. Overall, the course at Glasgow has been challenging but ultimately rewarding as I have learnt to adapt to difficult situations inside, and outside, the classroom.

Looking back at my undergrad years, I am grateful for the flexibility of the courses offered at the University of Stirling as well as the range of topics that we had the opportunity to study, from French Canadian cinema to Latin American literature. The exchange programme was also one of the reasons I decided to travel and work abroad… How time flies!

Now, to come back to my living room in Paris, it turns out that, due to the unprecedented measures taken by the Scottish government, both face-to-face classes and my third and final placement have been cancelled. This means I will go straight into teaching as a probationer in August! I have opted for the lucky dip option by ticking the “anywhere box” to quote the General Teaching Council, so will be sent wherever I am needed in Scotland. As a result of the pandemic, I decided to return home since I wanted to be with family over Easter.

There were only about 30 people on the plane as most people had cancelled their trips and the French government announced yesterday that there would be a further two weeks of “confinement” during which we are only allowed to leave our homes for an hour a day in order to buy essentials such as food and medicine or for daily light exercise within a 1 km radius. It is quite an odd experience having to fill out a form before leaving the house as the police may stop people to check that they are sticking to the rules but then desperate times call for desperate measures! It seems that the U.K. is not at that stage yet. However, having been in touch (not literally of course!) with friends from Sicily and Colombia, everyone is following WHO guidelines and staying at home to avoid any risk of transmission.

So that’s it for now and remember: lavez-vous les mains!’

Many, many thanks to David for sending this update – good luck with the remainder of the course and we look forward to finding out where the GTC send you next year! Keep in touch and stay safe.